After a couple of years of video ( Currently Sony HC-5 with raynox .3, no intentions of replacing it for a couple of years) i'm interested in mounting my 350D on my vapor narrow as well.

I've tried searching the forums but was not able to produce a satisfying answer.

I'm currently in the process of building a top plate to mount the stills under. I prefer this to a L bracket to keel things as compact as possible.

Before i start cutting the freshly made plate i'm wondering if there is any advantage of mounting the stills camera next to the video.

I will probably not be taking the stills along on 2/3rd of the jumps. for now. The jump ship on the stills jumps will probably be a c206 so headroom is a bit sparse ( even without camera equipment :) )

I am aware of the balance issues if i mount it on front. When i do it I will probably need to move the video more forward to keep the stills lense out of view. creating even more of a balance issue.

If I Build it side-to-side, what are besides the balance improvements things i should know ? The helmet is a vapor narrow so the snag points are a bit more articulated. Any other negative ( or positive notes ? )

Witch setup is easier to maneuver in small aircraft ?

The CarbonFiber + GlassFiber top plate is currently wide enough to enable either one of these options.

If you have the HC5 up top then putting the stills up top will not make much difference in respect to moving about the aircraft. From a comfort perspective I have been much happier with my stills on top after about 1000 video jumps in both configuration. Having all the weight in line with my spine is far more comfortable.

one thing to keep in mind is the remote for the still camera. u dont want that port hanging over the side where a riser strike would rip it off even if you use a 90 degree connector. i found it a little tough to mount the hc5 and 350 on a ftp and the sweet spot where the video wouldnt block the still was tiny with out messing up the connection locations.. pay attention to this closely before you start drilling. But like JP, i prefer both to be mounted up top.

In case of the side by side configuration... THe downside of this will probably be when I will be jumping with only the HC-5 ( FS4 training/competition ) Is - in your experience - the imbalance of this setup with just 1 camera mounted big or is it negligible in comparison to a sidemount setup ? ( the horizontal distance to the center of gravity seems smaller compared to my old sidemount setup)

I've found "both" to work just fine, it all depends on how the helmet is setup.

What you should look for is balance, so if both cameras safely fit on top, and you balance the helmet properly, then up top is the best.

In my case I switch it around, sometimes both cameras are on top, sometimes the still is on the front if I'm shooting something with a heavier camera up top. In that configuration I usually move the videocamera back more to balance out the helmet again.

Like JP said, the weight balanced on top of your spine is what you should go for.

I have a FTP with the extended plate, I have had my camera mounted in both spots, top and front. I find it more comfortable to have both my video and still mounted on the top. Good luck, have fun, be safe.